Chicago Is Set To Elect Its First Black Female Mayor

According to the Chicago Tribune, former federal prosecutor Lori Lightfoot and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle won enough votes on Tuesday to move on to an April runoff election.

This is the second time the city of Chicago will have a runoff campaign for Mayor, which happens when no candidate collects more than 50% of the vote in the first round. Unofficial results showed that Lightfoot won 17.48% of the vote, while Preckwinkle had 16%.

No matter who wins the election, this will be the first time that Chicago has had a black woman voted as Mayor. Whoever wins will become the second woman and the second African-American elected Mayor.

Jane Byrne served as the city’s first female Mayor from 1979 to 1983, and Harold Washington, served as the first African-American Mayor from 1983 until he passed away in 1987.

If Lightfoot wins the election, she will become the city’s first openly gay mayor. Before it was clear if she would face Preckwinkle or Bill Daley, who only earned 14.7% of the vote, Lightfoot said,

“So what do you think of us now? This, my friends, is what change looks like!”

Preckwinkle also spoke to her supporters and said,

“We may not yet be at the finish line, but we should acknowledge that history is being made. It’s clear we’re at a defining moment in our city’s history, but the challenges that our city faces are not simply ideological. It’s not enough to say Chicago stands at a crossroads. We need to fight to change its course.”

No matter who wins the election, congrats to both ladies for making history.